People's Blockade of the World's Largest Coal Port

see Rising Tide report on people's blockade

 

It was a great day and what a way to have a protest. After rowing across the mouth of the Hunter River to check out the array of tinnies, kayaks, rubber duckies, floating crate and tyre constructions that made up this year’s blockade I headed back to shore to hang out with friends and enjoy the entertainment provided by local Newcastle bands.

The success of the action highlights how more people are coming to understand that to be serious about climate change means developing a transition plan away from the coal industry. With the burning and mining of coal responsible for 40 per cent of Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions this is clearly where action on climate change should be focused.

Many blockade protesters targeted the emissions trading scheme with one popular slogan - Switch off the CPRS: switch on renewables – providing some spot on advice for the federal government.

This link carries interviews with many of the blockaders. Probably the best grab goes to Aaron McLean who when asked what should happen to the coal industry said, “I think they should all have a crisis of conscience and rethink their actions”.

Lots of Greens members participated in the blockade, with one member dressed as a polar bear bobbing around on a homemade iceberg for much of the day.

Congratulations to Rising Tide. This is the fourth blockade they have organised in recent years along with a host of other creative protests.

Rising Tide has an impressive record of organising non-violent actions. It was three women from Rising Tide who took the gloss off Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s announcement

last December on his greenhouse gas emission reduction target.

 

They interrupted the Prime Minister’s National Press Club address with the hundred plus guests reminded that the government should be targeting the coal industry not promoting a pathetic 5 per cent reduction by 2020.

Interestingly although the three Rising Tide women were evicted for their sit down actions in front the Prime Minister no one were arrested. Similarly at the Newcastle blockade and the February 3 encirclement of the federal parliament in Canberra no one was arrested. Both actions were declared illegal by the police.

The last round of arrests at a peaceful direct action was last July when Newcastle rail lines where blocked to stop coal train movements.

As more people turn to peaceful direct actions against the coal industry it will be interesting to see how the authorities react.

Non-violent protests, like the Newcastle Port blockade, are on the rise because people are feeling deeply anxious about climate change and are disappointed with the lack of meaningful action from federal and state governments.

 

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